Artist: Misery Index
Label: Nuclear Blast
Release Date: 8/28/03
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Title: Retaliate Artist: Misery Index Label: Nuclear Blast Release Date: 8/28/03 |
Judgment Committee Reviews | Rating |
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Abyss's Review:
I found myself pleasantly surprised by the quality of the last Dying Fetus album, now I find that Misery Index has upped the ante. Retaliate is a brutal slab of death/grind that knocks the breath out of you much like a sledgehammer to the gut. The band remains satisfying from both a technical as well as visceral point of view, giving the average listener what they long for all the while keeping it interesting.
"The band remains satisfying from both a technical as well as visceral point of view."
All but the most jaded metal fan will get a kick (in the face) out of this one. While I think it takes a little while to get going, by the time track four, "Angst Isst Die Seele Aut", gets going I find myself thrashing around my apartment, banging my head, and flashing the horns to the fish in my aquarium (I guess they're not into metal, they just stare at me and don't even blink. Come to think of it, they never blink... must be that lack of eyelid thing.). This album is a treat on all levels. The guitars sound vicious, plowing through each and every riff, satisfying the crunch craving in each of us, but keeping us wanting more all the same. The vocals remain as acidic as ever, delivering infectious cadences and raw emotion. And lest I forget the pummeling rhythm section which made me feel like I should take a pregnancy test after listening to it.
"This album is a treat on all levels." Misery Index prove that they can still get a lot of mileage out of this sound, and I could easily see this winding up on many top-ten lists in a few months time. I guess I'll keep this review short but sweet, as I don't really have much to add except that it's a kick ass metal record and worthy of your time. One word review: Killer.
Death's Review:
"Misery Index deliver. The album kicks serious ass." My anticipation-level was beyond high: would Baltimore, Maryland's Misery Index deliver us the Reign in Blood for the new millennium? Surely, they are capable of such astonishing heights. Jason Netherton and Sparky Voyles, formerly of new-era American death metal titans Dying Fetus, surely have the pedigree and the talent to elevate the metal genre to greater levels of intensity and technicality. Too bad drummer extraordinaire (ex-Suffocation, ex-Dying Fetus) Kevin Talley is no longer amongst the ranks, replaced for the record by Matt Byers (ex-Severed Head). The band's debut Overthrow showed incredible promise, and their live performances over the last few years have crushed all within their wake. I expected this to be "the shit" - nothing less. Verdict on their new album, Retaliate, their first for Nuclear Blast? Misery Index deliver. The album kicks serious ass. Reign in Blood for the new millennium is a bit of a stretch, no doubt, but Retaliate is more than just solid, it shreds with simultaneous surgical precision and primitive brutality, besting the vast majority of their competition and leaving the also good Stop at Nothing album by their ex-bandmates in Dying Fetus far behind in their wake.
"Bottom line: if you like to stay current on all that is going on with the scene, you have to know about this album." Retaliate comes across as one part Dying Fetus, one part Lamb of God, one part Slayer, one part more extreme grind. The riffs are aplenty, and Byers' drumming kicks ass, tons of double-bass and totally expressive fills. The opening title track surely evokes the mighty Slayer, with slow, building and ominous power chord riffs backed by slow, grinding double-bass that totally gets you psyched before launching into the fast, thrashy riffs. Netherton's voice is cool, and his lyrics are interesting and aggressive, but he is not my favorite and while his voice is at worst generic it isn't expressive enough to elevate this album from great to modern day classic like I had hoped for. This is right up there with the new Haunted album and stuff like that in terms of bringing back speedy thrash combined with early death metal among present-day releases, but the songs aren't catchy enough on the whole to take it over the top. This is close to a five skull album, but it just isn't all of the way there.
Bottom line: if you like to stay current on all that is going on with the scene, you have to know about this album. These guys will presumably tour like madmen for this, and I'm sure that they can and will be just as popular as Nile, Skinless or their former bandsmates in Dying Fetus soon enough, at the forefront of the modern American death metal movement. In fact, if it is true that Lamb of God are signing to a major label, and you could imagining the trend continuing toward the mainstream absorbtion of heavier and heavier material, I can totally see Misery Index being that next level of band an album or two on down the line. But as much as I'd like to already anoint them, they aren't all of the way there with this album. Oozing potential, and chock full of killer riffs I'll be banging my head to for the balance of the summer and beyond, there are at least six or eight albums I like better so far this year, and maybe it's more like nine or ten. Because these songs aren't catchy enough to stick with me long after I turn the stereo off, not really making me jones to hear them later. They sound great while they are on kicking ass, but I forget about them later. Perhaps this will change after repeated listens, but for now, this is a strong 4.5, but I can't quite give it the 5. Still, a killer, killer release.
Hel's Review:
I'm certain that none of my loyal readers (assuming, of course, that I actually have loyal readers) are surprised to learn that I have really been looking forward to this, the label debut of my favorite new death metal act, Misery Index. From the first moment I heard the material coming out of this coalition of ex-Dying Fetus members, I knew this was something special. And now I finally have a fully length label release to brandish around while making this proclamation.
"From the first moment I heard the material coming out of this coalition of ex-Dying Fetus members, I knew this was something special." Both Jason Netherton and Sparky Voyles deliver the high-caliber performances they are renowned for, and the songwriting is absolutely stellar. Though Kevin Talley no longer rounds out the line-up, his successor, Matt Byers, does an admirable job of filling his sizable shoes. The production on the record is very nice, and allows listeners to appreciate every blistering note.
"I have had the chance to see Misery Index perform live a few times since they formed a couple of years ago, and each time I walked away stunned." I have had the chance to see Misery Index perform live a few times since they formed a couple of years ago, and each time I walked away stunned. Listening to Retaliate admirably replicates this experience, though without the visual reference to reassure you that people really, physically, can play music this fast and technical. But since every individual note is so well articulated on the recording, you feel nearly as thoroughly pummeled, even without seeing it performed right before your eyes.
Misery Index encompasses all the speed and unrestrained brutality that makes death metal so addictive and compelling to those that love it. For these reasons and more, Retaliate is mandatory.
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